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Accolades

“This is good news for Massachusetts wine enthusiasts, who will now be able to purchase wines they currently don’t have access to,” said Robert Dwyer of Wellesley, who blogs about wine. “This is also good news for Massachusetts in general since it will mean new revenues.”

"Robert P. Dwyer of Wellesley, who blogs about wine at thewww.wellesleywinepress.com, calls the state’s liquor laws bizarre and favors a wider availability of wine. For consumers, it would be more convenient to be able to buy wine at a supermarket while shopping for food, he said."

“You have this strange exclusion of wine, which in Europe is considered a grocery item,” said Mr. Dwyer. “Here it’s considered the demon rum.”

"trying to predict the annual Wine of the Year is a popular parlor game among enophiles. This year, blogger Wellesley Wine Press held a contest, with New York wine retailer Grapes the Wine Co. awarding a prize of a Kindle Fire e-reader to the first commenter to correctly guess this year's top wine before it was announced. Unfiltered was impressed with the number of Top 10 wines prognosticated by Wellesley's readers. "Senelwine" guessed Château de St.-Cosme Gigondas 2009, our No. 10 wine, "Mike M" guessed Quinta do Vallado Touriga Nacional Douro 2008, our No. 7 wine, "James Z" guessed Baer Ursa Columbia Valley 2008, our No. 6 wine, and "RichardPF" nailed it, winning the Kindle, and the respect of his wine-loving peers. Looks like Wellesley's readers know their wine."

The Chicago Tribune's Bill Daley mentioned the site in Rosé: A wine for more seasons. I said "For me, they're like pumpkin spice coffee drinks: best enjoyed early in the season". Bill alsogave the site a shout-out for a piece the Capitol Case Clubcontributed about restaurant wine service. I thought it was a great example of how print wine writers can effectively engage wine bloggers.

The Boston Globe's website has been linking to my recent entries as part of their expanded local coverage includingWellesley. I truly appreciate that as it has driven a lot of local traffic to this site.

It was really nice of Thomas Matthews, Executive Editor of Wine Spectator to leave a comment and then check back and answer some questions I had. Awesome guy! Check it out here. And here.

Thanks to The Boston Globe for including The Wellesley Wine Press in their list of local blogs in the Food & Drink section. Check it out here.

The Wellesley Wine Press was just added tohttp://wine.alltop.com. Alltop is an interesting topical take on sorting through the best sites on the Internet- check it out and see which sites are listed for topics you're most interested in.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Update (April 19, 2010): The print issue of Wine Spectator containing a 95-point rating for this wine is arriving now and checks on Wine-Searcher.com reveal very little if any of this wine remaining on retailer shelves. I'd love it if you subscribed to this site so we can discuss future value plays before they're sold out.

Coho Headwaters Napa Valley Red Wine is a quiet little bottling in terms of production levels and mainstream awareness, but for those who follow Wine Spectator's ratings, it might just be the best recently released Quality-to-Price Ratio wine from Napa Valley.

Created by wine industry veterans Brooks Painter (Mondavi, Stag's Leap, V. Sattui) and Gary Lipp (Heitz, Mondavi, Chappellet), the wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Production levels have gradually increased from 776 cases in 2005, followed by 1,336 in 2006, and 1,714 in 2007.

In terms of ratings pedigree, Wine Spectator rated the past three vintages 92, 95, and 95 points. That in itself is impressive but at a consistent release price of $40 this wine is attaining ratings normally reserved for wines well over $100 a bottle. The average Spectator rating for a 2006/2007 Napa Cab with a rating of 95 or better (excluding this Coho) is $156. Those wines range in price between $62 and $325 a bottle. I'm not saying $40 is a cheap bottle of wine- I'm just saying that relative to the quality of this wine, it's a stunning value.

To get an idea of what the 2007 is going to taste like with some bottle age, I recently cracked open a bottle of the hard-to-find 2006. It was a gem. Here are my notes:

I think Spectator got their positive impression of this wine absolutely right: It's a beauty. It's not ridiculously big and dark, but it's wonderfully aromatic and flavorful. Ripe blackberry/raspberry aromas accompanied by milk chocolate. A little vanilla too. On the palate I really enjoyed the firm backbone and vibrant fruit. Incredible finish.

Truly, one of the best values going in Napa Cab right now. Very highly recommended if you can find this (or the more highly acclaimed '07 vintage) south of $35. Act quickly.

WWP 95/100: A Classic

The 2007 presents itself in much the same way (which is to say quite beautifully) and clocks in at 14.5% alcohol. Here are my notes on the 2007:

I thought the wine was amply aromatic from the moment I opened it. Classic Cabernet characteristics like blackberries and black currant on the nose. Complemented by a very enjoyable mocha streak on the palate with fine-but-sweet tannins. Some caramel reveals itself after some time. Such a delight to drink. The kind of wine you'll be sorry you didn't buy more of.

The 2007 vintage could be every bit as good or better than the 2006. But only time will tell. Either way, it's a great wine for the money.

WWP 94/100: Outstanding

The 2006 sold out quickly, but the 2007 can still be found. Have a look on Wine-Searcher.com: